Combing-machine.



No. s45,4|0 Patented. Mar. [3, won. A. WENNING & c. H. GEGAUFF.

COMBINE MACHINE.

(Application filed Dec. 9, 1898 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

Patented Mar. [3, I900. A. WENNING &. C. H. GEGAUFF.

COMBINE MACHINE. (Application filed. Dec. 9, 1898.)

2 Sheets$hee1 2.

(No Model.)

1 NORRIS PETERS co. Pnovoumo" msmumon. o c.

NITED STATES MECANIQUES, OF SAME PLACE.

COMBINGI- PATENT "Orrrcn.

I ALFRED WENNING AND CHARLES HUBERT GEGAUFF, OF MULHOUSE, GER MANY, ASSIGNORS TO THE SOGIETE ALSACIENNE DE OONSTRUCTIONS MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent Il'o. 645,410, dated March 13, 1900. Application filed December 9,1898. Serial No. 693,777. (N qmodeL) I anism; In the German Patent No. 97,308,0f

Augnst30, 1896, is illustrated a combingmachine of this character, and our invention is herein illustrated as embodied in a machine such as that in said German patent. In this class of machines up to the present time the.

employment of a plate 'for supporting the tuft during the'movementof the piercingor picking comb across it could only be attained by the use of a very complicated mechanism,

rendering the machine difficult of access andof regulation and makingit/necessary to have a special controlling device for this feature.

The object of the present invention is to overcome said difficulty, as will be hereinafter explained and the mechanism described with reference to the accompanying drawings,

0 which illustrate an embodiment of the invention, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical sectional side elevation of the combing-machine. Fig. 2 is a fragment ary side elevation showing the nipper mechan- 3 5 ism in aposition the same as that illustrated in Fig. ,1. Figs. 3 and 4: are fragmentary illustrative sectional views similar to Fig. 1, but

showing the mechanisms indifferent positions.

. Fig. 5 is a rear elevation from the right in 0 Fig. 3 of the upper part of the machine.

Them ovements of the tuft-supporting plate are somewhat complex, and they may be divided into two kinds, which are independent of each other. Before describing the ma- 5 chine in detail these two kinds of movements will be explained.

First movement: (a) The supporting-plate Z must take up the position seen in Fig. 4.

during the combing of the tuft by the ro-- seen in Fig. 4..

tatin g comb P, just out of reach of the teeth p of said comb. This necessitates the plate moving rapidly to the rear, sliding in its movement against the under face. of the lower jaw v6 of the nipper during the movement of the latter from the position seen in Fig. 3 to that (b) The combing of the head of the tuft being finished, the nipper'swings forward so as to transport the tuft toward the drawing-off rollers I and J, andthus it comes to occupy the position seen in Fig. 3. Dur- .ing this travel of the nipper toward the drawing-ofi rollers the supporting-plate must move forward along the lower face of the nip-v per-jaw 6 and finally take up the position seen in Fig.1. The tuft'will then be sup- '65 ported by the plate Z behind the teeth at of the picking-comb 3 and by a thin plate m, -(carried on and forming an extension of the front. end of the plate 1,) which projects'forward beyond the teeth 4, so that when the comb 3 '70 falls to act onthe'tuft its teeth will penetrate the latter and not'merely press on and bend it back or down. Second movement: The picking comb 3 havingfallen, the drawing-off rollers begin to '7 5 rotate. They seize the tuft to be drawn oh, drawing it through the teeth 4 of the pickingcomb; but the picking-comb does not at this time remain stationary. It advances slowly toward said rollers until it touches the upper roller J, Fig. 1, at the end of the drawing-off movement. This advancingmovement of the picking-comb has for its object to coincide with the feeding of the tuft, which feed is effected by the toothed roller E, and thereby prevents the rucking of the fiber, due to the formation of slack material between the feeding-roller E and the comb. It is therefore indispensable that the platel shall move forward with the comb 3 and at the same speed 0 as the comb, so as to maintain during this movement of the comb always the same posi-. tion with respect to the latter in order that the plate may hold the tuft up to the teeth of the comb during the-forward movement of 5 the latter. This slow forward movement of the plate Z is independent of the general oscillating movements of the nipper and is pro- 5 The nipper is composedof two jaws.

duced by a special cam K, Fig. 2, which actuates the rock-shaft T from the shaft 11 -through the medium of an arm X on the rock-shaf t T, which latter has a crank-arm T, connected by a rod T with a crank-arm H onthe rock-shaft H of the picking-comb. This shaft H is provided at its respective ends with crank-arms h, to which are coupled arms 8, which extend forward and carry the picking-comb 3. lVhen the picking-comb has advanced to the drawing-off rollersthat is to say, when the drawing-off operation is completed,Fig.1-the nipper resumes its rearward movement toward the rotating comb P. At this time the plateZ commences to withdraw, as already stated above. This plateZ must slide under the plate 6 of the nipper until said nipper shall have reached its extreme rearward position, Fig. 4, at which moment the plate Z must be fully withdrawn beyond the reach of the teeth of the rotating comb P.

' The first kind of movement of the plate Z is produced directly by the oscillatorymovement of the nipper away from the comb P to the drawing-off rollers and back again. The v second kind of movement of said plate is not produced directly by the oscillation, of the nipper, as this latter is at restwhile the plate is making this movement; but it is the forward movementof the picking-comb during the feedwhich causes such second movement of the plate Z, which keepsthe latter moving,

but maintains it in exactly the same position with respect to the comb during the movement of the latter.

Thedetails of construction of the entire machine will now be described.

The upper jaw 5 thereof is fixed to a frame or carrier-A9, with three arms, which is fixed on a rock-shaft A, mounted to rock in hearings in the main frame of the machine, and the lower jaw 6 thereof is jointed at U to an arm. of the carrier A9, so that the jaws may open and close. The oscillatory movements of the nipper areimparted by a cam A on the main or motor shaft A, Fig. 2, this cam acting upon a bowl A on an arm A, fixed on the rockshaft A. The cam rocks the shaft A, and

with it the carrier A and the jaws 5 and 6 of the nipper. In order that this oscillating motion may be transmitted properly to the plate Z, this plate is hinged at g, at its rear end, to an arm G on a-rock-shaft G on the jaw 6 of the nipper. This shaft hasalso an arm d and an arm K. The arm 61 is coupled to a spring draw-bar b, which latter is coupled to one arm of an elbow-lever N, which rocks with ashaft or arbor B in the carrier A the other arm of said elbow-lever being coupled at C to one end of a rod 0", which latter is mounted to turn at its other end about a fixed shaft or rod 0 in the frame. This construction causes the motion of the connected plates Z and m, as will be hereinafter explained. The elbowlever N is coupled at B to a slide-rod 9, which latter is coupled at its other end to the shaft F of the lower jaw 6 of the nipper. An up= ward pull is exerted on the shaft F by means of two spring-bars 12, Fig. 5, on which are coil-springs 12, which hear at their lower ends on supports forming pendants from a yoke 11, which has a knife-edge support on one arm of the elbow-lever N. The upper ends of said springs bear on nuts on the bars 12. This upward pressure or pull on the shaft F causes the nipper to tend to close at all times with a uniform elastic pressure, except when the rod 9 tends to prevent it by the upward mechanism, the elbow-lever N will swing, by

reason ofits connection with the fixed shaft O,'u pon its axis or fulcrum B in such a manner that the rod 17 will cause the arm d to turn upon its axis, andthis' will have the efiect to move the plate Z'forward' and-in pro portion to the a'dvanceof the nippertoward the drawing-off mechanism. The nuts 16 on therod 17 will advance, the rod sliding freely through the coupling q,--'Whi ch is not'itself carried about theaxis H during the movement of-the nipper.." Before the nipper shall have completed its. movement the nuts 16 will, however, come to bear on the coupling q, and after this the rod 17, not being allowed farther movementendwise, will prevent in turn the arm K and plate Z from advancing any fartherin front of the nippeig while'the nipper will continue its forward movement a little. Consequently the spring 14 will begin. to receive compression because of the continued descent of the joint-pieceD upon the rod 1), while the arm d is prevented from moving farther because of the nuts 16. Thus there will bea certain compression of the spring 14, which makes itself apparent by '-producing'play between the nuts 15 and the joint-piece D-that is to say, these nuts will no longer bear on or touch the piece D. (See Fig. 3.) This compression of the spring 14 causes the plate Z to advance as soon as the feed shall have caused the comb 3 to advance, or, in other words, has caused the coupling q to advance. The plate Z has in consequence of this been first stopped by the nuts 16 when it occupied its proper position in alinement with the teeth 4 of the picking-comb at the moment of the descent of the latter, and then as soon as the said comb shall have neared the completion ofits slow movement toward the drawing-off rollers during the drawing offthat is, while the nipper is at rest, Fig. 3the plate Z will have followed it exactly, remaining always close behind it until the comb 3 shall have touched the drawing-off rollers, Fig. 1. At this moment the nipper, or, rather, the carrier A", which carries the nipper,will again move away from the drawing-off rollers in order to reach the combing position, Fig. 4; but as the plate in its advance with the slow motion of the comb was only impelled by the spring 14 on the rod b and as by this motion the said spring is again slackened or expanded until the nuts 15 have again touched the joint-piece D the result will be that from this moment the rod Z) will again act as a simple non-extensible draw-bar, so that when the carrier A again turns toward the circular comb the connection to the fixed shaft 0 will oblige the elbowlever N to again rock on its fulcrum-the axle B-and to move again as far backward as it did forward at the preceding stroke of the nipper when moving toward the drawing-off mechanism. In this manner the joint-piece D on the elbow-lever N will compel, through the draw-bar Z), the arms d and G to turn upon their axle G, and thus again draw back the plate Z, which will withdraw beyond the teeth 19 of the comb P, which teeth would otherwise strike and damage it. The rod 17 does not hinder this motion, as it can only act by traction through its nuts 16, and these do not at this time bear on the coupling g. In the opening and closing of the nipper the same fixed point-the shaft Cis utilized. The upper arms of the elbow-lever N being coupled to this shaft, this lever in consequence of its oscillation,which occurs during the forward movement of the nipper, acts upon the rod 9,pressing upon the nuts 10 thereon, and thus obliges the shaft F to push back the lower jaw 6 or open it in proportion as the nipper advances toward the drawing-off mechanism. Afterthedrawingofi,thenipper returning again toward the rotary comb, the same oscillation of the elbow-lever N, in consequence of its connection with the fixed point C, will cause the nipper to close again in the same manner that it had opened,on the preceding opposite course. The draw-springs 12 by constantly drawing upward the shaft F cause the nipper to close. At the moment of the closing of the jaws 5 and 6 the piece 13 still continues to rise a little, and thus there is produced a little play between the nuts 10 and the piece B, which is necessary in order to obtain a good effect with the jaws, which under these conditions nip with the full efiect of the springs 12'. This play of the nuts 10 is seen inFig. 4, which shows the jaws of the nipper closed during the combing or While the nipper is at rest.

Having thus described our invention, we claim- 1. In a combing-machine of the character described, the combination with the pickingcomb, the nipper, and mechanism for operating said comb and nipper, of a sliding plate Z,

beneath the .lower jaw of said nipper, and mechanism for operating said plate, said operating mechanism comprising a set'of jointed levers carried by the nipper and connecting said slidin g plate to a fixed shaft in the frame, whereby the said plate is protruded from un der said lower jaw of the nipper in position to support the tuft to be combed; substantially as set forth.

2. In a combing-machine of the character described, the combination with the pickingcomb, the nipper, mechanism for operating said comb and nipper, and the sliding plate Z, under the lower jaw of the nipper, of the mechanism for operating and controlling the movements of the plate Z, said mechanism comprising the elbow-lever N, fulcrumed in the carrier A", the said carrier, a link 0,coupling one arm of said lever to a fixed point C in the machine-frame, the rock-shaft G, having arms G, coupled to the sliding plate Z, and an arm d, the joint-piece D, carried by an arm of the lever N, the rod b, coupled at its lower end to the arm d, and loosely mounted at its upper end in the piece D, the nuts 15 on said rod, and the cushion-spring 14, also on said rod, substantially as set forth.

3. In a combing-machine of the character described, the combination with the pickingcomb and the reciprocating'nipper, of a slid ing plate Z, to support the tuft at the picking= point, said plate being situated under the lower jaw of the nipper, and a rock-shaft car= ried by the nipper, said shaft having arms coupled to said supporting-plate and also an arm actuated by the movement of the nipper, whereby the said plate Z, has imparted to it a movementwith the nipper and also a move ment independent of that of the nipper, substantially as set forth.

at. In a combing-machine of the character described, the combination with the pickercomb, the nipper, and the mechanism for op-- erating the same, of the-rock-shaft G, carried by the nipper and provided with arms G, an arm d, and an arm K, the sliding supportingplate Z, under the lower jaw of the nipper and coupled to the arms G, the rod b, coupled to the arm d, and extending through a jointpiece D, carried by the elbow-lever N, the said joint-piece, the nuts and spring on the rod b, the coupling g, on an arm on the rockshaft II, which is actuated by the pickercomb, the rod 17, coupled at one end to the arm K, and the nuts and spring on said rod, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof we have hereunto signed our names in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALFRED wENNINe. CHARLES HUBERT GEGAUFF.

\Vitnesses AMAND BETTER,

.irEORGE GIFFORD. 

